


You don't know what love is

by GhastlyGhost



Series: Good Good neighbors (series) [7]
Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout 4
Genre: Other, there is no shame in my game
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-29
Updated: 2018-04-25
Packaged: 2019-02-23 08:04:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,266
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13185843
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GhastlyGhost/pseuds/GhastlyGhost
Summary: A fic made to write down some bits of the progression of the relationship between X3-28 and X5-58, from the point at which X3-28 started to feel things he can't really describe properly.I made a self-indulgent fic for my ship. Who is gonna ship generic Institute Courser unit if I don't? Even if people in the tiniest fandom I am in help characterize him and the other units... Even though I rp him, and people have said he is handsome...





	1. Chapter 1

It was after a mission. X3-28 was crouched by some cabinets, searching through the files. He still felt a strange sensation in his chest, and didn't know what was wrong with him. Maybe he was damaged, somehow. All X5-58 had done was shove him into a wall, behind cover. It was the right move, and should not have affected him like that. What if he'd done that at a more critical moment? He could have endangered them, or the mission. Putting the mission second? X3-28 shook his head while checking the area. No. No, that was wrong. And yet… His eyes wandered over to the other unit, who was examining a globe in the corner of the room. The light cast into the room from a window framed them and shined off of their dark features. His gaze lingered for but a few seconds, after which he tore it away again. It was time they returned to the Institute. 

There was a creaking sound behind him as he got up. Low and a little muffled, and close by. He whipped around and saw X5-58 had stepped on a fragile part of the floor. The sound had tipped them off pretty fast to how much of a mistake standing there was, but they didn't get away fast enough for X3-28’s taste. He quickly rushed towards them and placed a hand on their shoulder to pull them away. It was perhaps harder than needed. It was definitely harder than intended, as X5-58 stumbled into him, their faces nearly touching. Almost immediately, X3-28 backed up, nearly stepping into one of the many holes in the ground. X5-58 had to now grab hold of him. They had more awareness of how hard they needed to pull him, however, and it was just enough to balance him again.

“Unit, what is wrong with you?” They asked, the puzzlement clear in their expression.

X3-28’s eyes were wide as he stared into those of X5-58. He couldn't help but notice their angle and how the dark color of their iris made the shine of their eyes far more apparent. “No… nothing, unit,” he replied, while averting his gaze, and still feeling his heart beating noticeably faster than usual.

“Are you certain? You have never done this on any prior missions,” X5-58 noted with a tilt of the head and furrowed brows. “Did I hit your head against the wall?” 

There was another moment of hesitation, where X3-28 looked at the ground. Eventually, he straightened his posture and attempted to regain his composure with a deep breath, after which he softly replied, “...You did.”

“Maybe it'll pass, then. It wasn't that hard,” X5-58 suggested, still giving X3-28 an appraising look. 

He truly hoped they were not thinking of giving him a personal check-up at this time. This feeling the whole situation had caused was already uncomfortable enough without prolonged physical contact. “Perhaps.” 

A mild frown tugged at X5-58's lips, and they backed away. Good. Having them so close was beginning to get more distracting by the minute. “You were going to relay back,” they said. “We should have you checked for damage.“ 

_________

Back in the Institute, things were rather odd. In all his time as active unit, this had not occurred before. It wasn't as though he had many units for this to to happen with in his early days. X5-58 had reported to possibly damaging a fellow Courser unit, and a scientist had taken to giving X3-28 a more thorough maintenance check. 

While they looked him over, tilting back his head to examine his eyes, seeing how his object tracking was, he was concerned about what sort of punishment this would cause X5-58. Maybe just a caution. Hopefully just a caution. What they did wasn't severe enough to warrant anything harsh. 

At most, the injury caused was going to leave a slight bruise, which wasn't something he couldn't handle. Besides, it was caused in a moment where it was the better outcome. Had they not done that, he would have been hit by debris from the grenade. That would have cause irreparable damage to at least his skin, and perhaps his eyes, ears, and brain. Not to mention the destruction of a uniform.

It was a odd though. Not unpleasantly so, but odd enough to cause X3-28 some lingering confusion after the fact. It wasn't the action itself. It was more confusion on why it caused him to behave the way he did before relaying back. He was, as of yet, uncertain. He'd felt abnormal for a while, he realized, now that he thought about it. It was what only could be described as a not bad feeling. Actually, it was rather nice. It was a new feeling, too. There was more. The looks that took a bit longer than required, the concern for this unit's condition, she desire to continue working with them as much as possible. Scientists never told them about these things, so he was terribly ill prepared for it, and talking about it with another wasn't an option, even if some Coursers kept harmless things shared between fellows mostly confidential. If one deemed it questionable with the wrong unit, he would most definitely get reported. The best option would have been a scientist, were it not for the extra risk that came with it. He'd just have to figure it out on his own, and try to keep everyone else unaware. It may just pass.

When he left the check with an all clear, he saw X5-58 sitting next to a young scientist who was smiling up at them. It was rare to see scientists seemingly socializing with Courser like that. So far, he had only seen X5-58 do it,and only on rare occasions. Scientists did not often seem comfortable around Courser units, and this woman was usually just walking beside them when he was near. X3-28 recalled this particular scientist, Alicia Giordano, as a child. She walked right into X5-58 when they first started working in SRB, and she did not respond with fright. She just waved at the unit as they stared down at her, and they greeted her back. Ever since, she was nearly obsessed with Coursers. She’d ask about them often, even when working in Advanced Systems, her ideas often centered around improving the equipment of surface units. One of these days, she was going to arrange to be allowed into SRB, he was sure of it.

X5-58 glanced up as X3-28 approached. They said something to Miss Giordano. Judging from the lip movement, something about whether she doesn’t have work to do. Her eyes went wide, and she got up with a quick nod, after which she uttered a thanks and left before X3-28 could get much closer. 

Both the units’ eyes met, and X5-58 asked, “The damage is nothing serious, then?”

“No,” X3-28 replied, ceasing his approach a few meters away from X5-58. “None of my functions have been compromised.” 

“The general mission report has been drafted,” X5-58 stated. “I suggest you head to SRB to add what you deem necessary information.” 

X3-28 gave a quick nod, and turned to leave. As he walked away, X5-58 got out of their seat and made way for the Bioscience division they used to work in.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things go wrong during a mission and one of the units need some quick rescuing.

“Target 1 acquired. No damage.”   
X5-58 stood alone, surrounded by the broken bodies of those that had tried to hold them off. Gunners, hired by the Railroad, who were also present. Unexpected sight, but these were not experienced heavies and not overly skilled Gunners. It was an easy fight. Though, X3-28 had left to deal with where they thought was the heavier resistance. He was likely still chasing the second target if their suspicions were correct.   
“Status?” X5-58 asked over coms, taking a short moment to wait.

Shortly after the question, they got a response. “Active combat. Heavy resistance.”

He didn’t sound exhausted, but it was best for X5-58 to join him, lest the mission drag on. They’d have to contact to Institute to call in others to deal with the target they had on hand before running off. “Requesting assistance for target processing.”

X3-28’s voice came through again. “Unit-” His sentence was cut short by the sound of an explosion, followed by static before cutting out completely. 

Immediately, X5-58’s heart sunk and they tried to contact X3-28 again. “Unit, report.” They made an inclination to head for his position before realizing the Institute had yet to send in anyone to keep an eye on the unit they’d just caught. “Send gen-2 guard, immediately,” X5-58 commanded, harshly, not waiting for them to arrive this time. “Unit,” X5-58 said over the coms to X3-28, once again. “Status?” 

As the gen-2 units they’d requested finally relayed in, X5-58 had already set off, taking wide gaits through the halls, building up into a hurried run. They continued trying to contact X3-28, to no avail. It had become obvious they would be getting no response at this point, so they made contact with the Institute to inform them of the situation. “Contact lost with partnered unit. Suspected to be immobilised in explosion,” they stated. “Heading for last known position.” 

Hopefully, he was merely preoccupied or only the communication was damaged.

The battle he had entered into was chaotic, but he was luckily yet undamaged before this happened, so he’d gone into it in practically his best condition. It was a dangerous room, lined with fuel generators, and he tried to push through as fast as he could. He’d been careful where he aimed his shots, but he hadn’t been perceptive enough, nor did he know what heavies were willing to do to fend his kind off. Before he knew it, a loud noise drowned out all sound and a bright light blinded his vision. Heat blasted over unit X3-28, causing him to cover his face with his arms as he was knocked back and down to the ground. A thick and horrid smoke quickly filled the area, burning in his throat while he pushed himself up and felt around. He wasn’t sure how long he’d been immobilized before he woke up. There was ringing in his ears and he knew he was disoriented when he began to make his way out of the area while feeling the walls. His eye enhancements were malfunctioning, he thought. Vision was blurring. Tears ran down his cheeks. He didn't think he could get much farther. It was hard to keep breathing, his head was becoming light, and he knees were weak. His hand slipped, and his legs gave way. He soon found himself lying back on the ground, uselessly trying to connect to comms while covering his face with the collar of his uniform. Laboured coughs left him, hurting his throat and chest. Things were becoming darker and darker. Sound began to muffle more, the longer he remained. He’d failed. X5-58 would be penalized for his error if he couldn’t make it out. He kept reaching ahead for whatever he could take hold of, but it was no use. Eventually, even crawling took too much effort. He let out a series of weak coughs as he lowered his head, hoping the Institute would send assistance to his location before his lifesigns failed. Just before everything faded out, he felt something touching him, moving his body, and what he believed were hands grabbing his wrist and torso. He felt himself being lifted off the ground. 

Everything was black for a while. In spite of his hopes, he was certain he had been destroyed by the toxins in the smoke and the heat, and whoever or whatever had gotten a hold of him had been too late.

X5-58 had managed to make their way through the building and back to where they had split up, after which they’d followed the trail of death left behind by X3-28, to where the explosion they’d heard had likely happened. An inferno still blazed on within the area, behind two severely damaged doors. The metal had buckled outward, giving X5-58 space to try and force the door. The metal screeched as they pushed it with their bare hands until it was enough to fit through. The smoke hadn’t filled the hallway enough yet to block their vision, and they could make out another door ahead. It had been blasted open, with one of them flung onto the ground. Without any hesitation, X5-58 marched in, one arm covering their face. It was foolish. They had no protection from the fumes at all, but they were in a hurry. Any moment they stalled, the chances of finding X3-28 alive dwindled. 

Making their way through the thick and hot smoke, X5-58 scanned the area for any sign of life or just X3-28’s long and dark uniform. All the bodies they passed were still and didn’t match the clothing description, even when seen from a distance. They could hear the faint sound of weak and erratic coughing nearby, through the noise of the flames, and went in pursuit of its source. Their gaze was held low to the ground, and eventually caught a dark figure with long coat and outstretched arm. They weren’t ready to assume it was X3-28, until they had made it close enough to crouch down by his body. It was him, though his coughs had ceased. As quickly as they could, X5-28 swung X3-28 over their shoulder and rushed their way out of this blaze. The way out seemed a lot faster than the way in, and the first door they come in through they’d pushed far open enough for both them and unit X3-28 to fit through. After quickly placing X3-28 down, they pulled the door shut. It would have had to be enough to keep the smoke and spreading fire out until X3-28 woke back up. At least, they hoped he would wake up. Their heart was beating wildly in their chest while X3-28 lie motionless. His breathing was nothing more than a weak and unsteady wheeze. 

After removing their gloves and performing some quick checks, tapping and shaking to see if X3-28 would respond and a pulse check, X5-58 quickly contacted the institute as they placed the heel of one of their hands on his breastbone. “Unit recovered, but down and injured with respiratory difficulty. Requesting aid. Administering CPR.”

The Institute had the information of the duration between the explosion and the recovering of unit X3-28’s body, so X5-58 didn’t bother wasting time on providing more details. Instead, they focused on trying to get X3-28 breathing on his own. With the other hand over the first and their fingers linked together, their chest directly over them as instructed, they began to apply rhythmic pressure in the regular beat of a healthy heart. Once they reached the thirty compressions, they placed two fingers under X3-28's chin and their other hand on his forehead, to tilt the head back and open the airways. They leaned in, hearing for his breathing, seeing the movement of his chest. It was irregular. He was obviously struggling, but he had nothing blocking his airways. As fast as they could, X5-58 closed their mouth tightly around his, pinching his nose shut with one hand and keeping his head at the proper angle with the other. Two breaths, each of one second. Fuck. It wasn't enough, and the Institute hadn't yet responded. His heart was still beating, but his breathing hadn't improved, and every moment, he could fall into cardiac arrest.

Back to the chest compressions. They weren't sure this would help, and every moment spent on this was taking away valuable time from both X3-28’s life and the mission. His survival was in their hands, and they felt something they hadn't felt in years. Fear. A fear that they could fail and this unit would cease to function at all. A fear that they would let him slip from their grasp, and never see him again. The repercussions of failing another unit didn’t even cross their mind, even if it was possible for the Institute to send them back into training, or even reset them, if the situation seemed severe enough. X3-28 could only offer gasps. At least that was some indication that the compressions were likely effective. How effective, they didn’t know. X5-58 could feel themself beginning to tense.

Maybe this time. Once again, X5-58 breathed into the other unit, letting his chest rise slowly. They listened for his breathing. It sounded better, but not by much. 

Relief washed over them when they were finally greeted with the bright flash of a relay in, after what felt like at least an hour. Two older synth units, gen-2, stood before them and scanned the area before quickly getting down next to unit X3-28. He'd started to breathe regularly on his own, and X5-58 placed him in the recovery position while giving the other units a slow nod as they took over.

It was now up to X5-58 to finish the mission. As they headed back into the halls to the smoke-filled room, they pulled the gasmask off of the body of a nearby Gunners and put it on before opening the door and braving the flames once more. They should have taken the mask the first time they went in. It would have spared them the throat irritation, though it certainly helped their sight none. From what they could tell, one of the generators was hit by a Railroad tesla gun, which caused the detonation. X3-28 was likely farther away than the humans, and he was more durable than most, so he survived, while the others either died on the spot or suffocated before he was almost out of the area. He was lucky it wasn’t a generator that used a nuclear core. X5-58 doubted even X3-28 could survive that in such a small area. Identifying what caused the incident was useful for the mission report, but they weren't done yet. Past this point, was a unit that had almost cost X3-28 his life, and it would not get away if it was still functional. X5-58 paced ahead, kicking past bodies and debris, checking the faces for their target, in case it had been destroyed in the explosion. It would have been a shame if it had. X5-58 didn’t want the unit to have the satisfaction of missing the end of the chase. There was another broken door at the end of the room. It led to a staircase farther downward. The idiot must have fled there, not considering that most places would have but one entrance and exit in the basement. X5-58 subconsciously checked their ammo as they proceeded, more than ready to shoot. 

They walked quietly and quickly. A small room was at the end of this floor level, but there were many boxes and other objects scattered about that a rogue unit could hide behind. They could hear a rustling. It would have been easy to just read out the recall code, but they rather had a chase and a visual for this unit. A few steps away from the room at the other end, and they heard it, someone attempting to flee. Oh, this unit was bad at it, too. Slow, like every other base unit. In mere seconds, X5-58 had closed the gap between them and had their hand wrapped firmly around the frightened unit's neck as they stared coldly into its frightened eyes. 

“Nice try,” X5-58 commented, ignoring the unit’s cries for mercy as they went on to speak their recall code. “Unit D1-87, activate recall code…”  
The cries for mercy became louder with each word that left them, but they continued as though those weren’t even there. At the end, it closed off with, “Igneus.” 

With that final word, the unit’s begging ended, and it slumped over. A soft huff left X5-58 as they looked at the sad figure, and they started to walk, dragging the limp body behind them. What an ungrateful being. It didn’t grasp that they were merely taking them back home. It was a far better place than this wretched wasteland. It just didn’t want to admit it.

There was no concept of the passage of time where X3-28 was with his mind. Everything was empty. Everything was black. Eventually, there was some light as he opened his eyes. Two gen 2 units were bent over him, a sight that caused him to wake rapidly and take a deep breath that sent a pain through his chest. The units knelt down and tried to get him closer to his usual awareness as they continued to check the damage. X3-28’s senses were slowly returning. His coat was open, and he could feel where he’d been administered some medical chems. There was still a heat coming from somewhere, and a biting stench. He turned his face to the door, from where the light of flames still shined. Suddenly, from the smoke, approached a fed up X5-58 in scorched uniform, with a target unit held by the collar and a damaged gas mask over their face. 

“Area secured,” they stated, throwing the target unit down in front of them. Though, the synth was visibly damaged from the heat it’d gone through and showed bruising on the neck. X5-58 didn’t care to keep an eye on the target unit anymore. They crouched down to check on X3-28 and removed their mask to see the state he was in better. They stifled a mild smile. 

X3-28 could tell. He understood is as relief. However, it could have been amusement. After all, it used to be him helping them to stay out of trouble, and now they were, once again, saving his ass.   
“It’s good to see you to your senses,” X5-58 said, softly. “You should try to not get used to me saving you, however.” They brushed some of the ash and blood from X3-28’s face. 

He noticed they're gloves weren’t on their hands. Without thinking, he placed his hand on theirs, causing them to cast a glance at the gen 2 units. He followed their gaze and realized how inappropriate his response had been. He pulled his hand away before the gen-2 units turned their eyes towards them, after which X5-58 stood back up and offered X3-28 their hand to assist him in getting to his feet.

Once X3-28 was up, X5-58 contacted the Institute.   
“Second target recovered. Five to relay.” 

X3-28 tried not to look at X5-58 while he used them as support during their wait on the relay. They'd both be getting after mission checkups. Both of them knew that much. X3-28 was not looking forward to it, and he wouldn’t have been surprised if X5-58 requested to be paired with another unit after this. It was a stupid mistake.

There was a blue flash, and the group was back in the Institute. Personnel stood ready to take X3-28 in for treatment and evaluation. X5-58 was taken by a smaller group to another room. With X3-28’s injuries, he moved a lot slower, and X5-58 was quickly out of his sights. He didn’t want to think too much about how everything had gone wrong, but it was impossible. Perhaps it would help to analyze if he wanted to do better on the next mission. Stipped down to merely his underclothes, he stood before the doctors as they examined what felt like every inch of his body. While their eyes and hands wandered, his mind was still on what he should have done differently. It occasionally went to what X5-58 must have been thinking at that moment.

The doctors went over the usual screening and metal evaluation. Physically, X3-28 was fine, aside from some throat and eye irritation. He’d been advised to remaining on facility patrols for a week and told mister Ayo was being informed of the situation. That wasn’t to be the end of it, then. If he was now to be confined to the facility for so long, he would be stuck hearing Mister Ayo’s complains about himself and any other unit that caught his ire. He was excused from the examination room, and stepped out. 

X3-28 got dressed into his synth black variant of the synth uniform, after which his threw on his coat and headed out into the hall. To his surprise, he was greeted by unit X5-58, who’d been waiting with their back to the wall. 

“It is correct to assume there are no immediate harsh repercussions, then?” X5-58 asked, turning their eyes to X3-28.  
“I am to be restricted to indoor security for at least a week,” he replied. “Though, Mister Ayo could decide on other measures.”  
After giving X3-28 a quick look over, X5-58 asked, “How are you feeling?”  
“I am physically well. There is no more discomfort.” X3-28 ran his hand over his collar and looked down the hallway. “We should file the mission report.”

X5-58 gave a nod, and the both of them made their way for SRB. The system had been changed, recently. Units were required to file individual reports rather than group ones, but they still preferred to file the reports at the same time. Though, the Institute may change this at some point as well, with worry of disobedience constantly on the minds of those in SRB. X3-28 just hoped they would start sending gen-2 backup sooner in missions than wait until a courser had been immobilized or destroyed for anything to be sent. He couldn't always rely on X5-58 being available when something went wrong.

**Author's Note:**

> It would be a shame if something were to happen to you, unit... *glances at Railroad sole survivor, who murdered Z2-47 in cold blood*


End file.
